When I first walked into the sacristy I wondered why his stole was on crooked. As a shiny new curate I learned quickly that this was the Deacon for the faith community. His ‘day job’ was with IBM but his clear life vocation was that of a deacon. He was passionate about connecting the faith community to the world. I often describe this ministry as ‘being the bridge between the faith community and the neighborhood.’
This past week we were blessed to host the Association of Episcopal Deacons. I had the privilege of welcoming the Deacons from across The Episcopal Church to ECMN. It was a wonderful opportunity to share the ever-increasing impact deacons are having across Minnesota.
For my entire tenure in ECMN I have said that we need more deacons. In fact, one of the strategic initiatives that your elected leaders are working on is ensuring every faith community has a relationship with all four orders of ministry: laity, bishop, deacon and
priest.
This evening we will ordain one transitional deacon and two vocational deacons. This is great, but frankly we need more. For us to fully live into the ministry of all the baptized, for us to build stronger bridges within our neighborhoods, we need more deacons.